Clearbridge Investments LLC Sells 5,970 Shares of International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM)

Clearbridge Investments LLC decreased its stake in International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM - Free Report) by 14.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 34,787 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 5,970 shares during the quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC's holdings in International Business Machines were worth $7,647,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Compass Financial Services Inc bought a new position in International Business Machines during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC bought a new position in shares of International Business Machines during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Avondale Wealth Management grew its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 56.0% in the 4th quarter. Avondale Wealth Management now owns 156 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 56 shares during the period. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of International Business Machines by 134.3% in the 4th quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 157 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rialto Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in International Business Machines during the 4th quarter worth $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 58.96% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on International Business Machines from $217.00 to $228.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on International Business Machines from $233.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of International Business Machines from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of International Business Machines in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of International Business Machines from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $231.13.

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Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Robert David Thomas sold 26,543 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $253.01, for a total value of $6,715,644.43. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 45,007 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,387,221.07. This represents a 37.10 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

International Business Machines Stock Down 2.6 %

IBM stock traded down $6.50 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $243.49. The company had a trading volume of 5,305,333 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,124,184. International Business Machines Co. has a 52 week low of $162.62 and a 52 week high of $266.45. The company has a market capitalization of $225.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.99, a PEG ratio of 5.81 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.82, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $251.05 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $232.26.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The technology company reported $3.92 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.77 by $0.15. International Business Machines had a net margin of 9.60% and a return on equity of 38.99%. As a group, equities analysts predict that International Business Machines Co. will post 10.78 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

International Business Machines Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a $1.67 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.74%. International Business Machines's dividend payout ratio is 104.21%.

International Business Machines Profile

International Business Machines Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides integrated solutions and services worldwide. The company operates through Software, Consulting, Infrastructure, and Financing segments. The Software segment offers a hybrid cloud and AI platforms that allows clients to realize their digital and AI transformations across the applications, data, and environments in which they operate.